Kim Walker SJ

Details and Completion

I made the decision quite early on in the build that I wanted to go and pick the guitar up in person. I wasn't sure whether I'd be able to afford the time or flights when completion date rolled around. I'd just have to wait and see.

I made international payments through the RBS spread out over a year or so and the exchange rate was in my favour and going in the right direction. I did start to worry when it looked like Scotland might actually take independence in the referendum as I was pretty sure that that would weaken the GBP against the USD and my last payment was still pending! Not that that's of much interest in a guitar build thread, but I add it just in case anyone else considering an international build hasn't considered this. Scotland in fact didn't win independence, but it was a small margin!

Oh, and the case. I haven't mentioned the case, have I? Kim gave me options:



I went with the Hoffee, having seen Tim May's when he was over playing in Scotland in 2014. Kim was right - it is awesome! I do own a Calton and it's a heavy beast of a case. The Hoffee is way nicer.

The final decision was the pick-up. I do play out - more on that later. I asked Kim if he would be happy installing a pick-up and what he would recommend, but he seemed hesitant and said nobody ever really asks for that. I was quite surprised to hear that. My go to pick-up has been David Enke's PUTW and I did consider that, but after a bunch of research, I decided to try the Baggs Lyric. Meanwhile Kim had been over on Doug Young's pick-up page and was quite impressed with just how far the technology has come since he last looked at pick-ups. I ordered the Lyric from Sweetwater and had it shipped to Kim's address.

I went with the default medium tall fretwire on Kim's recommendations - I hadn't even considered being asked about fretwire to be honest.

I got an email from Kim to say that the guitar was ready and he was happy to hold onto it until I made the final payment and could get out there. This was tough, knowing my guitar was ready in one country and I in another! Getting away from work around Christmas was just not on the cards – I run a Post Office, so I was looking at early in the year. I did look at shipping options, but I really didn't want to go down that route if possible. So I liaised with Kim and John Thomas and booked flights for February.

And we're off...

The afternoon and evening

John Thomas came over for lunch, at least he *said* he was coming over for lunch, but with a newly minted SJ in the living room, I think he might just have had an ulterior motive! We played for a bit then sat down to a fantastic lunch of gumbo of crusty bread. It was absolutely delicious and, followed of course by some more fine coffee. Then we headed down stairs to Kim's workshop. Fellow UK picker Nigel had not one, but two new Kim Walker guitars waiting to be picked up and he'd given me strict instructions to try them and report back. Well, it was a tough assignment but I was happy to oblige. He had a cocobolo OM and a 000 in jaguar mahogany. The OM was lush, but the 000 was absolutely stellar. That Kim Walker knows how to build a guitar, that's for sure! John had brought over his AER acoustic amp and we played around with the Lyric pickup in my SJ, but I hadn't brought any of my preamps and so I knew I would be able to tweak it and hopefully get some good tone for playing out.

And then it was time to go.

We said our goodbyes to Kim and Dianna and hopped into John's car for the drive to John's place. I hadn't seen John for 10 years so we had some catching up to do. We got there around tea time and chilled for a bit in the conservatory and then it was time to be introduced to some fine old guitars from John's collection, including two banner Gibson guitars from the WW2 era and, of course, John's three Kim Walker guitars. I was reacquainted with the guitar that started this whole thing off 10 years ago, John's 'Nick Walker'.

After some pickin', it was time for some eatin' and we went out for a fine meal at John's local with John and his good lady and had a wonderful meal. I'm always bowled over by the hospitality of fellow players I've visited in the USA. After our meal it was back to John's for some more playing of fine instruments. One of my favourite songs to play is Springsteen's Ghost of Tom Joad, partly because Grapes of Wrath is one of my all-time favourite novels. I sat in John's conservatory and played that song on one of his old banner Gibsons and it was a special moment. The fingerpicking of the song sat so sweetly on that guitar and its age and my location and the friendship all tied together into an unforgettable moment for me.

And then my journey was over and it was time to head home. I had booked with British Airways after checking their cabin baggage policy and measuring it against my Hoffee case. And d'you know what? The BA staff could not have been more helpful or accommodating. They allowed me to board first and make sure I got my case in the overhead, not only on the international leg but also the connecting flight from London Heathrow to Glasgow. And so I made my weary way home back to the Isle of Arran, ready to introduce my new Kim Walker SJ to my friends and family.

Honeymoon

The initial euphoria probably lasted about a month. It just so happened that we were making a CD for the Arran Ceilidh Band at the the time and I hadn't yet recorded my version of Tony McManus's Ye Banks & Braes yet. So I got to use the Walker for that particular track. Unfortunately, the sound engineer we were using doesn't like using mics for acoustic guitar so we used the a DI into the desk—remember the guitar is equipped with a Baggs Lyric. Nevertheless, I was pleased to be able to use the Walker on the new CD.

https%3A//soundcloud.com/cams-campbell/ye-banks-braes

My pal and bandmate Donal (on fiddle on Ye Banks above) plays guitar too and he thought I was off my head paying so much for a guitar. I don't think he really believed it could be all that much better than what I already had. Then he played it one night after a gig and his jaw dropped. It was rather a good feeling actually!

And so, my SJ was at home, the one I'd waited 10 years for. Did I like it as much as I knew I should? Did the anticipation match the reality? Big questions.

I found myself having doubts after the first couple of months. You see, what was happening was that I was going out to play gigs with my Santa Cruz and Dreizehnter, two or three a week, and having no time to play at home. One night I had some time, I sat in the living room and played one of my favourite fingerstyle pieces on the SJ and on the Dreizehnter Model A. My wife was at her computer with her back to me and I asked her not to turn around, just to listen and tell me which one she preferred. Guess what? She preferred the Model A and was surprised because she was sure she'd picked the Walker. That was disappointing for me, but, to be honest, I thought the same.

I would equate it to a pair of shoes you've had for a while and then you get a new pair that are lovely and expensive and shiny and, well, new. I needed to spend time with the Walker, let it loosen up a bit and show me what it could do. That wasn't going to happen without playing it, so I made the decision to start taking it out to gigs for the bluegrass band and use it exclusively for that. And that's what I did.

I played it plugged in at least once a week in our bluegrass band, so it was getting a good work out with a heavy-gauge Red Bear pick, playing rhythm and flatpicked breaks. It was then that I noticed its buzzing. It had come from a rather dry environment to Scotland, where the RH is often as high as 80%. Not sure why that should cause buzzing - I would have expected the opposite. And so began the neck tweaks. Kim was kind enough to provide a Stewmac Allen key to get to the truss rod and, after confirming with Kim what sort of action I should be taking, I began the process of adjusting the neck relief bit-by-bit. Kim also provides two saddles with his guitar: one tall, one not so tall. It's the little things! It took a few weeks of trial and error, but I eventually got there with the neck relief and saddle height to where I like it.

Not long after getting the guitar, I started lessons with Bryan Sutton on ArtistWorks and that's been great on the Walker. Tone is foremost in Bryan's lesson plan and I've been working on my technique and tone, using the Walker to practice on and work on my Video Exchanges. Here's Whiskey before Breakfast.



It's now over a year since I brought the SJ home with me. I still take it out to my weekly bluegrass band gigs and I'm sure that it was making the decision to do that that helped me bond with the instrument. I'm not sure how that bond would've formed if I hadn't made that decision. I did have some moments when I wasn't quite sure that it was all that I'd hoped it would be, but as I played it more and more, the bond began to form and it felt comfortable.

As for the tone, it's taken about a year for the top to start to open up and the difference is stark. After 20 minutes of playing time, it starts to hit its stride and the trebles are just like they were when I first played John Thomas's guitar, thick and bright and wonderful.

I just had a weekend away at a guitar gathering in an English country manor and I spent a good 90 mins jamming with my plucky dip partner in the foyer beyond the main entrance and the acoustics in that part of the building were amazing. That Walker guitar sang!

So, that's the story so far. Hope you liked it. I'll conclude by saying that my name is back on Kim's list. That should tell you something!

And finally, here's my favourite guitar player playing my favourite guitar at my house!

Superb posts Cams - very much enjoyed reading and listening - thanks!

It's a tiny detail, but I really like the shot of the back of the headstock with its elegant little notch in the top.

Keith

Really excellent thread Cams , thanks for posting! 

Another reason to regret that I wasn't able to make the RMMGA meeting this year.

I must say, the Soundcloud recording was really good. Are you still using the Lyric for recording and live work, and if so how are you finding it?

I use the Lyric for playing out coupled with a Venue DI. It's a good combo and I get pretty good tone. The boost button is really handy for solos too, but the tuner on the Venue isn't the best. It's still useful to have the mute button there though. 

For recording I would use mics if I can. It was just that the sound engineer couldn't be bothered I think. I'm pretty sure that was going through a Baggs PADI for that recording.